Miner&#39;s acetylene lamp



'June 24 1924.

W. J. MITCHELL `MINFRS ACETYLENE LAMP Filed 13, 1922 Patented June 24, 1924.

tratos 'WILLIAM zr.' MimcHnLn for noirnfn, Wnsnrneron.

npplieatian-meu May .'13, i922. fsrielno. 560:55?.

Beit known .that l, WrLLrAMfJ. MITCHELL, a fcitifzen 'of lthe IUnited States, residing at Kopiah, :in `the county of Lewis andvState of Mlashington, have invented certain `:new and useful improvements 'in Miners Aeetylene Lamps, 'of which l'the following is a sp'e'eioation, fre-ference being had rto the aceompalryiing drawings.

This iiinvention 'relates tofaeetylene lamps which `are vlused 'by IIn-iners, fand particularly to that 'typ-e fof ilamp wherein there is an lupper "water `containing elramber, a lower carbide containing chamber, and vmeans whereby Jwater maybeoaused Ato flow "from vthefupper chamber finto the lower "chamber to cause the generation of gas :inthe lower chamber.

'@ne "of Arthe objects lof the present invention-is :to provide means whereby the carbide containifnglehamber maybe cleared olf used carbide whenever desired, and :more speci/lioally'to provide 'fme'ans whereby thefsludge may be pulled fout `(ifthe'ehamber without the necessity .of breaking-up the carbide-and disliguring or deforming :the `carbide cham- Iber inrso'fdoing.

ISti'll another .object is Lto 'provide improved me'ans whereby to =eontrol the fiiow of water ifromithe water'ehambertolthev-oarbide ohfa'n'ibe'r.

Anotherobject isfto =provide means whereby if the jet .Ibe blocked @up for fan-y n'easonfthe :gas `will come baek --throjugh the aif'ater :feed and be discharged linto the open .airthelg'as being separated from the water fand-'the water fbeing returned to the water lchamber instead of rrunning'rdown onto the Emmeris face :Another object is to provide lmeans for -supportinga pad of cotton lin position across the duet leading Lto vvthe :gas jet lto thereby Tiilterthe gas passi-ng to the jet.

A :still further ob/ject is toimp'rove upon the closure-'whereby 'water is yadmittedto the water `containing ehamber.

'Other objects will Iappear in ythe course of 'the following description.

My invention is .illustrated in the Iaecompanying drawings, whereiuz 'Figure Al is 'a rear elevationof -a miners lamp Constructed Vin accordance with my linventionrg Figure is a Vertical seetioni'therethrough iiiom front to rear Figure 3 is a front elevation;

V`at 'its upper end engages ,.por'tionao'f the plunger.

Figure :4f-is .an enlargediragmentary front e 'ationpafrtlyinseotion.;

iguifef --isfanien-laa'ged rvfertie'alv section of members Iand 4:9; s. Y

Figure 6 :is :awt-op plan -view lof Athe lanip. Referring 'fto these drei/wings, flit vwill be seen that I have illustrated-a 4niiners lalnp 'comprising :a water `containing chamber, designated 10, andhaving integrally formed therewith the'oylindriealoarbide containing chamber l1. The water containing `harnber .is illustrated las lbeing approximately ieo'tangular @in itforni and having-a back wall '12 :and #a @front Wall 13. Water .may :be poured "into the, (Water containing leh'amber through -lthe opening 14, thisopeni-ng'g;'being, :shown as :reetangularjin seotion and hav-ing .inwardly extendingside walls i5 and upwardly extending .end walls lf, there i being aslidefl? fadaptedt'o close :this Iopening andfslidingbetween the walls-15. Tt will be 5seen. that immediately over :the opening :the walls ers turned :acutely inward so Athatffis-flresliding l@over Ais `Imoved forward, it will be forced down upongitsseat to `pre"- vvent anyehanee-of waterleaking out. A"Ihe (cover Ecannot feoni'e off or beeome' lost and `at "the .same `Atime 'it is `relatively :easily opened. y L A, 4

`Enterldingupward from the Carbide containing'chaniber or fgasgenerating `ehamber l1 is laggas duet -18 which extends upward in front of tlie`-wagll and ,then outward where yit @is fprovded vwith .a gas jetiopening 19 *of fan-y suitable haraoter; The outerl -face of the -wall .13 l'ocnstitutes a yrefletor `and'thesideantltop wall o lthe chamber i1.0 p extendon beyond this reflector so as -to "form .a AhoodO.

For the :purpose igniting the et, "'I lprovide a lplunger 21 'which' extends up through thetop Yoftheflhoo'd and has a knob tfits g upper end, the lower end o' they plungerv e'X'- tending downward through the bottonrof ythe hood, The middle portion of the rplungeris formed to provide a plate .912 tooft'hed Von `oneedge,afs at :23, these't'ee'th ezitending `upwa rd. Theplunger is-urgedupward -by fsprin-g :24 whieh Ysurrounds the lower lporfplatefQQ or anyother suitable abutment,antl fagainst the middle 4 A, l h'Coaetingwith the plate 2Q .and =constituting"a .iguideffor the plunger -is ar cleft member C25, in "the elett of which the ,plate 22 reoiproeates. This tionfotthe plunger and engages yagainstl'the' cleft member has its outer end screw-threaded, as at 26, and is formed inward of this screw-threaded portion 26 with a shoulder 27 within which is disposed a piece of flint 28. This flint is urged inward against the teeth 23 by means of a spring 29. An adjusting cap 30 engages the screw-threads 26 and bears against the outer end of the spring 29. By rotating this cap, the tension on the spring may be increased and the flint forced with greater or less force against the teeth 23. Obviously, when it is desired tov ignite the gas it is only necessary to depress the plunger quickly one or twice and a stream of sparks will spring from the iiint 28, which will cause the ignition of the gas.

The bottom of the carbide chamber 11 is formed by a plate. or disk-like cover 31. This is hinged, as at 32, to the ange 33 at the lower end of the chamber 11 and is formed to provide a seat 34 for a gasket 35. The flange 33 is formed at one point to provide a seat or shoulder 36. Pivotally connected to the under face of the cover 31 is a link 37 which is angular in form so that it may swing down beneath the cover or be brought up approximately parallel to the side wall of the chamber 11. To the cross bar of this link is pivoted the shank 38 of al hook 39. This shank is pivoted to the link 37 at 40 and extends below this point of pivotal engagement. If it be desired to close the cover and hold it locked, the lower end of the shank is engaged with the shoulder 36 and the shank turned up to a vertical position. This draws upon the link 37 and locks the cover tightly in place. The shank moves toward the wall of the chamber 11 sufficiently far so that strain on the cover will not act to open the shank. The upper end of the shank is engaged between two spring clips 41 so that the shank will not accidentally come out of position. The hook 39 forms the means whereby the lamp is hooked in the miners cap and at the same time forms a cam which will draw the cover positively in place, and also forms a lever for opening the cover against any adhesion, and which will break any adhesion between the cover and the flange 31, and forms a convenient handle whereby the cover may 4be manipulated.

Extending upward through the web 42 which forms the bottom of the water chamber 10 and the top of the carbide chamber 11 is a tube 43 formed at the level of the web 42 with a valve seat 44. Below this point the tube 43 is perforated at a plurality of points and at its extremel lower end, as at 45. Just above the web 42 the tube 43 is perforated, as at 46. Above these perforations 46 the tube is imperforate nearly to its upper end. Adjacent its upper end, however, it is provided with overflow openings 47. Disposed on the seat 44 is a ball valve 48 which may be made of a steel ball such as used in ball bearings, and for the purpose of deoressing this valve l provide a tubular hollow member 49 screw-threaded at its upper end to engage with a screwthreaded opening 50 in the top of the water chamber. Above the top of the water chamber this tubular member 49 is provided with a handle 51 and there is an opening 52 leading out from the interior of the tubular member 49 through this handle to the exterior air. This member 49 is of such length that when it is screwed down it will engage the ball 48 and hold it tightly to its seat and this member may be screwed upward to any desired distance within a certain range from the ball 48 to release the pressure upon the ball and permit the leakage of water from the water chamber past the ball 48 into the carbide chamber. This member 49, as before remarked, is tubular and provided with a plurality of perforations 53 which afford means, as will be later described, for the separation of the water from the gas.

Disposed below the entrance to the duct 18 is a resilient pad holder 54 for the support of a cotton pad just below the lower end of the duct 18. This cotton pad only need be renewed once in a while and may be very readily pulled out of the holder and put back in place. The holder is so constructed as to afford marginal flanges extending over the pad.

ln miners lamps of the character described, ca-rbide is liable to collect and coagulate in the carbide chamber and it is rather diflicult to get the carbide out. Carbide hardens within the chamber and then the usual practice is to bang the lamp or carbide chamber against some body to loosen the carbide, or insert an implement into the chamber to loosen it.4 This tends to deform or bruises the lamp and may put its gas regulating mechanism out of order. Tn order to avoid the necessity of so treating the lamp, T provide a carbide cleaner which consists of a circular disk 55, the outer margin of this disk being downwardly turned and toothed, as at 56, this disk being attached to a tubular handle 57 having a button or head 58 at its lower end. The disk 55 has a central opening 59 which is in alignment with the bore of the tubular handle 57 and of a size to loosely surround and fit over the downwardly extending portion of the tube 43. The tubular handle 57 is longer than the lower portion of the tube 43 so that flow through the tube 43 is not obstructed in any manner. The tubular handle 57 has its side apertured, as at 60, at a plurality of points. Viater flows down past the valve 48 and through the lower portion of the tube 43 and out through the openings 45 and then out cleaner carries all the sludge and used carbide out of the generating chamber, and it will be only necessary under certain circumstances to clean the handle 57 and open the perforations in the handle which, because the cleaner is entirely removed from thev generating chamber, can be easily done. There will be no necessity of cleaning, however, the tubular member 43 nor opening the perforations therein.

The valve 48 is disposed within a basinshaped seat which is larger in diameter than the valve so that the valve can more or less roll within this seat. inasmuch as the lamp is carried in a miners cap, it follows that every time the miner moves his head the ball valve 48 will roll from its seat to some extent, thus unseating the ball and permitting water to trickle down and through the openings 45 and so into contact with the carbide. Thus there is a more or less constant feed of water through the carbide. By turning down upon the stem 49 this ball may be held firmly upon its seat.

`While I have illustrated a form of my device which I have found to be thoroughly practical and which is particularly effective, l do not wish to be limited thereto, as it is obvious that many changes might be made in the details of construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim l. An acetylene gas generator including a Water chamber and a carbide chamber separated from each other by a web, a tubular member extending longitudinally through the web and formed adjacent the web with a basin-shaped valve seat, a ball valve disposed in said seat and freely movable therein, the tubular member above said valve being provided with water inlet openings and below the valve being perforated, and means passing through the upper end of the tubular member and through the top of the water whereby the valve may be held to its seat or released.

2. An acetylene gas generator including a water chamber and a carbide chamber separated from each other by a web, a tubular member extending longitudinally through the web and formed adjacent the web with a basin-shaped valve seat, a ball valve resting upon the basin-shaped seat and freely movable in all directions thereon, the tubular member above said valve being provided with water 4inlet openings and below the valve being perforated, and a member having screw-threaded engagement with the top of the water chamber and extending downward through said tubular member and adapted to bear against said. valve and hold it to its seat or to be released from engagement with the valve.

3. An acetylene gas generator including a water chamber and a carbide chamber separated from each other by a web, a tubular member extending longitudinally through the web and formed adjacent the web with a basin-shaped valve seat, a ball valve resting upon the seat and freely movable in all directions thereon, the tubular member above said valve being provided with water inlet openings and below the valve being perforated, and a tubular member having screwthreaded engagement at its upper end with the top of the water containing chamber and extending down into the first named tubular member and adapted to bear against the valve, this inner tubular member being perforated and having a vent opening to the exterior air.

4. A gas generator including a carbide containing chamber, a closure for the bottom of the chamber, and means for removing the carbide from the chamber comprising a disklike member having a serrated flange and normally disposed adjacent the top wall of the chamber and having a depending handle whereby it may be removed from the chamber.

5. An acetylene gas generator including a gas generating carbide containing chamber having a closure at its lower end, a duct leading from the upper end of the chamber, a filtering member disposed beneath the lower end of the duct, and a cleaner comprising a disk adapted to be disposed within the carbide containing chamber adjacent the top thereof and below the filtering member, and a handle extending toward the closure whereby the cleaner may be removed, the disk being so formed that the gas may have access to the filtering member.

6. An acetylene gas generator including a water containing chamber and a subjacent carbide chamber, a tubular member extending from the water containing chamber into the carbide chamber and perforated within the water containing chamber and the carbide chamber, an annular disk-like cleaner disposed within the carbide chamber adjacent the upper end thereof and having a perforated tubular handle normally surrounding the tubular member that is within the carbide chamber, the tubular handle of the cleaner permitting its removal and acting as a shield for the perforations of the tubular member.

7. In anacetylene gas generator, a watercontaining chamber and a subjacent carbide chamber, a perforated tubular member extending from the water-containing chamber into the carbide chamber, the tubular member adjacent the bottom of the water-containing chamber being formed to provide a valve seat, a valve coacting therewith, and a Stem separate from the valve and extending downward through the top of the watercontaining chamber and into said tubular member and adapted, vwhen shifted downward, to hold the valve to its seat but when raised permitting the valve to rise.

8. In an acetylene gas generator, a wateroontaining chamber and a sub] aeent carbide chamber'7 a perforated tubular member eX- tending downward from the upper portion of the water-containing chamber into the lower end of the carbide chamber, said member at the lower end of the water-Containing chamber being formed with a basin-shaped valve seat, a ball valve loosely resting upon said seat but freely movable in all directions thereon, and a stem extending downward from the top of the water-containing vchamber through the upper portion of the tubular member and having screw-threaded engagement at its upper end with the top wall of the water-oontaining chamber whereby said stem may be turned to bring it into engagement with the valve but hold it to its seat or turned away from the valve to per mit the oscillation of the valve.

9. In an acetylene gas generator, a wateroontaining Chamber and a subjaeent carbide chamber7 a perforated tubular member eX- tending downward from the upper portion of the water chamber into the lower end of the carbide chamber, said member at the lower end of the water-containing chamber being formed to provide a valve seat, a valve ooaeting therewith, a tubular stem extending downward through the top of the watercontaining chamber, through the upper portion of the tubular member, and having screw-threaded engagement at its upper end with the top wall of the water-containing chamber whereby said stem may be turned to bring it into or out of engagement with the valve, said stem being hollow and perforated and having an air vent at its upper end.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature.

WILLIAM J. MITCHELL. 

